Awake at 5:55 a.m. It was going to be another hot one with expected temperatures around 93. I went down to The Mara after getting dressed to refill my mug one last time with coffee. Once I got back to my room, I animal watched for a few minutes. We had a family of 3 cattle that had been near my room for most of my stay. Besides Mom and Dad, there was a baby that was really cute. I notified Bell Services about my transfer to the BC and then I was off to MGM.
As you know, they changed the ToT drop sequences. Sometimes when Disney makes "Improvements" you end up with something else. This ride actually helps my back so I went on it with my fingers crossed that they hadn't messed up the weightlessness sensation.
WOW, WOW, WOW!!! It's not as good as it was, it's 100 times better. Now instead of just getting the free falling thrill mainly at the end of the ride, you get it all through the ride. And every ride is different although I went on it so many times during the trip I suspect I did a couple of the ride variations twice. There are more special effects too but you have to look for them.
During my second ride I had a lady come up to me and ask if she could go on with me. It was her first time and she was scared out of her mind. I talked her through most of it and by the time we got off, the ToT had another convert.
We also got stuck during one ride. This happened at the very end and we sat in the room you're in just before the doors open to let you off. As a result of that, we were taken back on and went to the head of the line.
After getting my fill there I decided to get a piece of the famous grapefruit cake so off I went to Starring Rolls. Hey, what's this, NO grapefruit cake! The CM behind the counter said they were now only serving it at the Brown Derby. I didn't want anything else so I just grabbed an OJ and went to pay. The woman at the cash register said is that it and I said well I was going to have a piece of grapefruit cake but you don't have it out here any more. She said, no problem. I'll go get you a piece. I was really happy and thanked her a lot.
One thing I noticed at MGM is that the hours for some of the shows have been switched. Being a morning person, this really affected me. BatB didn't start until mid afternoon and the first seating for WWTBAM was around 11ish. Added to that, The Great Movie Ride was closed. It was getting on to noontime so I just moseyed around the park looking at things. I did Muppet Vision and then went to meet people from the DisBoards for lunch at the Prime Time Café.
Had a great time with the group and I enjoyed my Meatloaf. When we were done, I had to go. I wanted to check in to the BC and get settled. Tonight was an E-Ticket event and I needed to be rested. I set off looking for the mysterious MGM to EPCOT path. This time I did find it. With the scooter it took me about 10 minutes to travel the distance.
Had an uneventful check in at the BC. Remember how I mentioned that my room at the AKL was pretty far from the lobby? Well I hadn't seen anything yet! The CM who brought my luggage was almost apologizing for the distance as we went on and on and on. Finally we could go no further and there was my room. I was at the very front of the building. Now for some good news. My room was absolutely HUGE! The biggest room by far that I've ever had at any Disney resort. I could have held a dance in there.
It was still early and I wanted to try Storm Along Bay, so I got changed and out I went. Today may have been the hottest of the entire trip and the water in the pool was like the kind you find in a whirlpool. I went down the slide once and decided that air conditioning was the only way to deal with the heat.
I watched some of the tape I made of the Paul Revere show and then had a nice long nap.
I was on my way to the MK via the monorail in EPCOT for an 8 p.m. PS at the Crystal Palace with Chris and Jen. Tonight was the night we'd be hiding the Disney Magic Orange for the third time. Just as I got to the fountain in EPCOT my song came on. I was thrilled and I wasn't the only one. Standing next to me was a woman with some friends. She obviously knew the music well as she was keeping time with her foot. I went over and spoke to her when it ended and she said it was her favorite too. Looks like that song could have a fan club.
OK, just a reminder on how this all got started with the orange. About 6 years ago, I had gone to a character meal at Chef Mickey's before an E-Ticket night with the kids. Chris had grabbed an orange from the buffet intending to eat it while we walked around the MK. Near the end of the night he still had it but instead of throwing it away or bringing it back to his room, we decided to hide it. There were, of course, guidelines. It couldn't be hidden on a ride and you can only do this on an E-Ticket night. Thus, a tradition was born. We hid another one about 3 years ago. Neither time did I take any pictures. I was going to remedy that this trip.
We were seated at the Crystal Palace around 8:15. The MK was an insane asylum. Amazing amounts of people were everywhere. It was nice to have a great meal and watch all of the chaos through the windows. A near disaster to our plans was averted by a wonderful CM. There were no oranges available at the buffet! Horrors! I asked for one and our server went into the kitchen and brought one out for us. We named the orange Skippy.
Around 9 I went outside to view the fireworks. Then we waited for the crowds to thin a bit and headed in to enjoy the E-Ticket fun. This was going to be a great night. My best guesstimate was that there weren't much more than 1000 people in the MK.
We did Splash Mountain first and of course Skippy got into the picture they take as you go down the hill. I didn't buy the picture but I wish I had now. But as Skippy was quite photogenic, he did make his way into may other photos. They can be seen in my May 9th and 10th album.
We also did the HM, Buzz, The Wedway and then Buzz again. Oh, and just as the E-Ticket night was starting, they were still letting people on PotC. We were one of the last groups on the ride.
All and all Skippy had a great time. We left him playing checkers on Main St USA with a glass of Coke.
Ick! The bus service to the BC and it's multi stops. Swan, Dolphin, Yacht Club. Bleech. I didn't get back to the hotel until 1:15 a.m. Then I was entertained by the bug bites itching for a while. Finally got to sleep at 2 a.m.
High Points: The new ToT drops. Lunch with the DisGroup. E-Ticket night with Chris and Jen. Riding Splash Mountain.
Low Points: The location of my room at the BC. The water temperature at SaB. The unbelievable crowds at the MK. Getting stuck on the monorail for 20 minutes.
Weird Points: The pictures of Skippy. Going down the slide at SaB. Main St. USA at 12:30 a.m. being nearly empty. Laughing ourselves silly over the things Skippy was doing.
Best Point: Hearing my song at the EPCOT fountain.
Photos from 5/9 and 5/10:
http://www.PictureTrail.com/gid2153163
Skippy Does Disney World:
http://www.PictureTrail.com/gid2153659
Roberta
As you know, they changed the ToT drop sequences. Sometimes when Disney makes "Improvements" you end up with something else. This ride actually helps my back so I went on it with my fingers crossed that they hadn't messed up the weightlessness sensation.
WOW, WOW, WOW!!! It's not as good as it was, it's 100 times better. Now instead of just getting the free falling thrill mainly at the end of the ride, you get it all through the ride. And every ride is different although I went on it so many times during the trip I suspect I did a couple of the ride variations twice. There are more special effects too but you have to look for them.
During my second ride I had a lady come up to me and ask if she could go on with me. It was her first time and she was scared out of her mind. I talked her through most of it and by the time we got off, the ToT had another convert.
We also got stuck during one ride. This happened at the very end and we sat in the room you're in just before the doors open to let you off. As a result of that, we were taken back on and went to the head of the line.
After getting my fill there I decided to get a piece of the famous grapefruit cake so off I went to Starring Rolls. Hey, what's this, NO grapefruit cake! The CM behind the counter said they were now only serving it at the Brown Derby. I didn't want anything else so I just grabbed an OJ and went to pay. The woman at the cash register said is that it and I said well I was going to have a piece of grapefruit cake but you don't have it out here any more. She said, no problem. I'll go get you a piece. I was really happy and thanked her a lot.
One thing I noticed at MGM is that the hours for some of the shows have been switched. Being a morning person, this really affected me. BatB didn't start until mid afternoon and the first seating for WWTBAM was around 11ish. Added to that, The Great Movie Ride was closed. It was getting on to noontime so I just moseyed around the park looking at things. I did Muppet Vision and then went to meet people from the DisBoards for lunch at the Prime Time Café.
Had a great time with the group and I enjoyed my Meatloaf. When we were done, I had to go. I wanted to check in to the BC and get settled. Tonight was an E-Ticket event and I needed to be rested. I set off looking for the mysterious MGM to EPCOT path. This time I did find it. With the scooter it took me about 10 minutes to travel the distance.
Had an uneventful check in at the BC. Remember how I mentioned that my room at the AKL was pretty far from the lobby? Well I hadn't seen anything yet! The CM who brought my luggage was almost apologizing for the distance as we went on and on and on. Finally we could go no further and there was my room. I was at the very front of the building. Now for some good news. My room was absolutely HUGE! The biggest room by far that I've ever had at any Disney resort. I could have held a dance in there.
It was still early and I wanted to try Storm Along Bay, so I got changed and out I went. Today may have been the hottest of the entire trip and the water in the pool was like the kind you find in a whirlpool. I went down the slide once and decided that air conditioning was the only way to deal with the heat.
I watched some of the tape I made of the Paul Revere show and then had a nice long nap.
I was on my way to the MK via the monorail in EPCOT for an 8 p.m. PS at the Crystal Palace with Chris and Jen. Tonight was the night we'd be hiding the Disney Magic Orange for the third time. Just as I got to the fountain in EPCOT my song came on. I was thrilled and I wasn't the only one. Standing next to me was a woman with some friends. She obviously knew the music well as she was keeping time with her foot. I went over and spoke to her when it ended and she said it was her favorite too. Looks like that song could have a fan club.
OK, just a reminder on how this all got started with the orange. About 6 years ago, I had gone to a character meal at Chef Mickey's before an E-Ticket night with the kids. Chris had grabbed an orange from the buffet intending to eat it while we walked around the MK. Near the end of the night he still had it but instead of throwing it away or bringing it back to his room, we decided to hide it. There were, of course, guidelines. It couldn't be hidden on a ride and you can only do this on an E-Ticket night. Thus, a tradition was born. We hid another one about 3 years ago. Neither time did I take any pictures. I was going to remedy that this trip.
We were seated at the Crystal Palace around 8:15. The MK was an insane asylum. Amazing amounts of people were everywhere. It was nice to have a great meal and watch all of the chaos through the windows. A near disaster to our plans was averted by a wonderful CM. There were no oranges available at the buffet! Horrors! I asked for one and our server went into the kitchen and brought one out for us. We named the orange Skippy.
Around 9 I went outside to view the fireworks. Then we waited for the crowds to thin a bit and headed in to enjoy the E-Ticket fun. This was going to be a great night. My best guesstimate was that there weren't much more than 1000 people in the MK.
We did Splash Mountain first and of course Skippy got into the picture they take as you go down the hill. I didn't buy the picture but I wish I had now. But as Skippy was quite photogenic, he did make his way into may other photos. They can be seen in my May 9th and 10th album.
We also did the HM, Buzz, The Wedway and then Buzz again. Oh, and just as the E-Ticket night was starting, they were still letting people on PotC. We were one of the last groups on the ride.
All and all Skippy had a great time. We left him playing checkers on Main St USA with a glass of Coke.
Ick! The bus service to the BC and it's multi stops. Swan, Dolphin, Yacht Club. Bleech. I didn't get back to the hotel until 1:15 a.m. Then I was entertained by the bug bites itching for a while. Finally got to sleep at 2 a.m.
High Points: The new ToT drops. Lunch with the DisGroup. E-Ticket night with Chris and Jen. Riding Splash Mountain.
Low Points: The location of my room at the BC. The water temperature at SaB. The unbelievable crowds at the MK. Getting stuck on the monorail for 20 minutes.
Weird Points: The pictures of Skippy. Going down the slide at SaB. Main St. USA at 12:30 a.m. being nearly empty. Laughing ourselves silly over the things Skippy was doing.
Best Point: Hearing my song at the EPCOT fountain.
Photos from 5/9 and 5/10:
http://www.PictureTrail.com/gid2153163
Skippy Does Disney World:
http://www.PictureTrail.com/gid2153659
Roberta
